Personhood, QOL, and Well-being in People with Dementia undergoing Creative Arts-based Therapies: A Scoping Review

Abstract

ABSTRACT Creative art-based therapies (cABT) provide a creative non-pharmacological approach in therapy to people with dementia and can potentially improve their personhood. This review identified cABT that focused on the personhood of persons with dementia living in residential facilities and determined how quality of life (QOL) or well-being were assessed. Searches were conducted on PubMed, Medline (Ovid), EMBASE, CINAHL (EBSCO), PsycINFO (OVID), and SCOPUS databases, to gather articles from 2010 to 2020. In this review, cABT encompassed art, music, and theater/drama. An overall of five studies were included and, in these studies, art programs were seen in the form of water painting, an intergenerational art program, live music performances, and medical clowns. QOL and well-being were assessed using the Greater Cincinnati Well-being Observation Tool, a QOL checklist, and transcribed from conversations to develop themes on participation and mental well-being. Personhood was promoted through self-expression and self-creativity. Increased number of participants are required for future cABT to further understand the impact the arts may have on personhood, on the QOL and well-being, and enhancing creativity for people with dementia.